


The Boys' New Friend

by AmeliaDarkholme



Series: You Gave Me A Family [4]
Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Iron Kids, Post-Spider-Man: Far From Home
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-28
Updated: 2020-03-28
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:20:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23353825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmeliaDarkholme/pseuds/AmeliaDarkholme
Summary: It had been a year since Nebula saw her friends. While she might not miss Drax, and especially not that moron Quill, she did miss Mantis and Rocket. She was also slightly curious about how Thor was doing. She wouldn’t admit it to anyone, except maybe Pepper, but Nebula was glad that the Guardians had come to visit her. She just wasn’t expecting the new addition that was tailing behind Thor.
Relationships: Balder & Thor (Marvel), Harley Keener & Nebula & Peter Parker & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Harley Keener & Peter Parker, Nebula & Guardians of the Galaxy Team, Nebula & Pepper Potts, Thor & Guardians Of The Galaxy Team
Series: You Gave Me A Family [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1368082
Comments: 9
Kudos: 90





	The Boys' New Friend

**Author's Note:**

> I have to admit, this story is more of a self-indulgent. And a filler chapter. But it's super fun to write it, so whatever :P Originally this was meant as a gift for my sister, an early birthday gift. Also, I have tweaked some facts for both the comics and mythology, but I promise it is all for the sake of the story. Tell me what do you think, okay? I hope you guys like it ;)

_“Mummy! Peter! Harley! Nebby! We have guests!”_

“ _Nebby?_ Wow, she got cute nicknames now? Does this mean I can call her Nebs— _OW!_ What the hell, Rocket?”

“You’ll thank me.”

If Nebula was just a little bit normal, she’d find the whole thing at least _mildly_ amusing. But she was who she was, and the only thing she felt was gratitude toward Rocket’s initiative.

The Luphomoid didn’t immediately came out of her room to greet the Guardians, opting to watch them first from afar, half-hiddened behind the door. She wouldn’t admit it, but she kind of felt wary of the Guardians, as if they were meeting again for the first time. After all, it had been over a year since she last saw them. A lot could happen in a year, as was proven by the whole Quentin Beck fiasco. She didn’t know it yet though, whether she worried over the Guardians having changed so much, or _she_ was the one who had changed a lot. Harley and his stupid psycho-whatever talk would probably tell her that she was regressing. Nebula didn’t care though. If Peter was allowed to hide and continue his studies at home because he was traumatised, then she demanded to be allowed to regress back into her paranoid-self.

From where she was, Nebula could see that Morgan was the one who opened the door, although Pepper was standing a few feet away from her. The girl’s attention immediately latched on Rocket, hugging the fury thief with all the excitement of of a six-year-old. Nebula couldn’t help but to grin at the way Rocket fought so hard to maintain his mean, nonchalant attitude with Morgan squeezing the life out of him. Along with Rhodes, the racoon had become some sort of an uncle for the girl, much to the amusement of both Tony and Nebula. He would always sneak interesting but worryingly dangerous machinery for Morgan, which more often than not caused an argument between him and Rhodes, who took the role of the responsible uncle seriously. When Rocket stiffly patted Morgan’s head so she would let him go, despite his body language, it was obvious to everyone how fond he was of his _niece._

Morgan dragged Rocket into the cabin by his hand, and he made sure to greet Pepper when he passed her. He didn’t seem to remember there was the rest of the Guardians with him, having used to walking in and out of the cabin easily whenever he visited throughout the years. It was only after Quill let out a loud cough that Rocket turned his attention back to his teammates. Although the Guardians did come to Tony’s funeral and had met the rest of the family, they were never properly introduced. Obviously, it should have been Nebula’s job to introduce the Guardians to her family, but she didn’t feel like she was ready to come out yet. So she let Rocket to do the introduction, once again opting to stand hidden in her room as she watched everything unfold.

The first one to step into the cabin was Quill, as the self-proclaimed leader of the group. He politely shook Pepper’s hand and told her his name, looking oddly nervous for some reason. Nebula suspected it was because this was the first time he met an actual, functioning adult, and the Luphomoid made a mental note to bully him about it. The second one to greet Pepper was Drax, who took her hand and gave it a kiss in a show of uncharacteristic gentleness. Like Quill, he seemed nervous too, even if he did a better work hiding it. The next one was Mantis, and she bypassed hand-shaking altogether in favour of hugging Pepper. She babbled something about learning human customs and becoming friends, and that explained everything more than enough. When Groot came shyly following Mantis, Pepper looked a little alarmed at first. But then Groot gave her flower, and Pepper softened, an amused smile taking over her features.

Nebula almost forgot about Thor until the Thunderer had crossed the foyer and stepped into the cabin in all his golden glory. Like Mantis, he hugged Pepper instead of shaking her hand hand, except he had known Pepper for much longer than either Nebula or Rocket, so it was understandable. Thor’s whole being seemed to radiate all the happiness he felt upon seeing Pepper, who returned the sentiment genuinely. Nebula was just about to decide that she was finally coming out, when someone else came trailing behind Thor.

“Who the hell is that?” Harley asked, surprising Nebula a little bit because she hadn’t realised that the blond and Peter had come into her room.

“I don’t know,” Nebula asked. She narrowed her eyes at the new person, feeling cautious already.

“He kinda reminds me of Loki, to be honest,” Peter said. “If Loki was teenager.”

Peter was right. The boy beside Thor really did remind Nebula of the Trickster, whom she’d only seen in glimpses during his captivity with Thanos. Torturing prisoners were something that Gamora refused to do and always tried to get Nebula to not do it as well. For some reason, Thanos agreed to her request, and left the torturing business to Ebony Maw and his lackeys. But that didn’t mean that Nebula never saw Loki. Even if it was only in passing, she could still remember how he’d looked, how his presence had commanded the room until Thanos broke him. And Nebula could see Loki clearly in the boy who was now standing awkwardly beside Thor. He was tall and lithe in the way Loki was, with pale skin and angular features that resembled the Trickster. The boy’s hair was just as dark as Loki’s, except it was curly instead of straight. However, the similarities didn’t only go as far as their appearances, because Nebula was sure that the way the boy clasped his hands behind his back with his head tilted back as he observed the room with masked interest was an eerie reminiscence of Loki.

"This is Balder," Thor introduced with a big smile on his face, as if answering Harley's question. "He's my brother."

"He's _what_?" Harley and Peter exclaimed in unison, loud enough to attract everyone's attention. It left Nebula with no choice but to join everyone in the room with her brothers in tow. She made sure to slap the back of their heads though, for ruining her plan.

"Hello," Nebula said flatly, giving the Guardians a curt nod even though her eyes were still set on Thor and his 'brother'.

"Nebula!" Thor greeted her, his widening smile made him looked younger. "It's nice seeing you again. And hello to you too, young Parker, young Keener. I hope you've all been doing well."

"We have," Nebula drawled in return. Without preamble, she nodded at the boy beside the Thunderer. "I didn't know you had another brother."

"Well, he's been living with my friend Sif's family," he explained. "When the Guardians and I went to Vanaheim to visit Sif, her family told me everything. They said that Balder had been living with them as Sif's brother. They would have told me about him sooner if I hadn't been travelling so much since the whole thing with Malekith."

"Why was he sent to live with them?" Harley asked, earning a nudge at his rib from Peter and a scolding glare from Pepper. The blond ignored them, even when Thor's smile dimmed a little.

"Oh. Um. Well, you see—“

"My mother wished for me to be away from the Allfather's influence," Balder answered flatly, cutting of Thor. "She had seen how _great_ my siblings turned out to be because of the Allfather's teachings, and she didn't want that for me. She did not realise, however, that by casting me away I would grow to resent her."

Nebula was rather glad that Harley actually had the decency to look guilty over Balder's explanation.

"Balder," Thor began, his tone sounded tired all of the sudden. "We have discussed this before. Mother only wanted the best for you. I told you about Hela and Loki, didn't I? And even I am not a stellar example myself."

"And what if I had turned out to be the next Loki?" Balder shot back, and Nebula noted the way his dark eyes flashed green for a second, which only emphasised his resemblance with Loki. "If Sif's family never told me who I really was, who could guarantee I wouldn't grow up as resentful as Loki?"

Thor looked like he was about to argue even further, judging from his stiffening body language and the narrowing of his blue eyes. Balder seemed to realise it as well, and it looked like he was prepared to take extreme measures as a response, his raised hand glowing yellow. But the brothers immediately faltered when Nebula made an obvious move toward Pepper, who was the closest toward the brothers, to shield her from possible harm. There was an apologetic look on Thor's face at the same time Balder's expression smoothed into something more pleasant. There was even a small smile on the younger God's face. Peter, bless his heart, took that as an opportunity to break the tension and changed the topic of discussion entirely.

"Well, it’s nice to meet you, Balder," Peter said, a big smile on his face. "Anyway, I'm starving. Anyone else up for pizza?"

“Oh my _God,_ I haven’t had pizza in _decades!_ ” Quill exclaimed loudly, earning a giggle from Morgan because apparently, she found the idiot’s childishness amusing. But then again, she was only six.

“That settles it,” Pepper said, slipping into her perfect-host persona easily. “We’re having pizza. Peter, can you order the usual? And Nebula, you and Harley can take our guests around the house, show them where they’ll be staying. I will set the table for us all, and Peter can help me later after he’s done ordering.”

“Can I help, Mummy?” Morgan asked.

Pepper smiled at her daughter and nodded. “Of course, darling. Come on.”

Nebula and Harley waited until their family had gone to do their respective chores before they beckoned their guests to come with them for a tour around the house. Despite the fact that the term ‘cabin’ insinuated a rather modestly sized accommodation, the Stark cabin was big enough with five guest bedrooms on top of the five main rooms for the permanent occupants of the cabin. After they’d taken their guests around, with Harley doing all the explanations while Nebula merely kept an eye for wandering hands and sticky fingers, they finally showed the guests their rooms. Quill was set to bunk with Drax, much to the former’s utmost disappointment, in the guest bedroom closest to the living room. Beside their room was Mantis’, which was right across Nebula’s. Rocket and Groot were in the only guest bedroom in the basement, across Harley’s lab. The blond had asked Nebula to threaten Rocket thoroughly so the little thief would stay away from his lab. Lastly, Thor and Balder would be in the room beside Harley’s.

After the Guardians plus Thor and his brother had settled down in their respective rooms, Nebula and Harley led them all into the dining room. It looked like Peter had added two more tables beside the usual dining table. The boy was bustling around the dining room to help Pepper, and Morgan was setting up the utensils on the tables. Nebula and Harley were just about to offer their assistance when Pepper stated that everything was set already, so they all took their seats around the tables. The dinner went relatively smoothly, in Nebula’s opinion. It was a little weird, if she had to admit, but in a good way. Pepper was talking with Thor, filling each other on how their lives had been in the past year. Mantis was having a great time entertaining Morgan, who clearly took a shine on Mantis and her bubbly personality. Quill and Rocket were arguing as per usual, with Drax making his typical quips every now and then while Groot watched on them with a small smile. Everything seemed to work out well, and everyone looked happy.

Nebula, however, wasn’t expecting her brothers to find themselves getting along with Thor’s brother so soon. Harley, who was sitting across Pepper on the other end of the combined tables, was leaning toward where Peter was sitting on his right, listening raptly to the conversation Peter had with Balder. Nebula couldn’t help but to watch the interraction closely, finding it interesting how Balder looked like a completely different person with how easily he smiled as he replied to whatever it was Peter had said. When Harley interrupted him with something Nebula supposed was a joke, she could finally see the resemblance he had with Thor through his bright laughter. The Luphomoid could feel herself started to smile at the sight of how well the three of them seemed to get along. She wasn’t the only one who had noticed, apparently. She found Thor and Pepper were looking in the same direction as she had when she turned her attention to them.

“Looks like Harley and Balder manage to get along,” Pepper said, her lips tugged into a smile of her own. “I was worried that they wouldn’t, to be honest.”

“I think Peter worked his magic on them,” Nebula said, knowing how persuasive Peter could be through his cheerful attitude. “We all know it is impossible to not like him.”

“I’m glad that Balder finally has people he feels like he can talk to,” Thor said without taking his eyes off his brother. “Sif told me that even though there were others who were around his age, Balder always found it difficult to interact with them. Hopefully, he can be friends with Peter and Harley.”

“You do know that your brother’s not exactly _their_ age, right?” Quill butted in, suddenly joining the conversation, much to Thor’s and Nebula’s annoyance. “Isn’t he like, a thousand years old?”

“He’s only three hundred and fifty years old, _Quail,_ ” Thor drawled out.

“Well, I’m pretty sure no _human_ has figured out how to live over a hundred,” Quill snapped in return. “Not even Captain America and his buddy are that old.”

"Yes, but in Asgardian standard, Balder is only about six years old. He's not much older than little Morgan here."

Everyone within listening distance fell silence. And that meant everyone but the three boys at the other end of the table. They all stared at incredulously at Thor, who was oblivious to everyone's attention on him. In the end, the sudden bout of silence brought the boys' attention on Thor as well. The only one who didn't care was Morgan, who happily chomped on her slice of pizza, although she did take a quick glance at Thor when he mentioned her name.

"What's wrong?" Harley asked, straightening in his seat. He looked a little wary, as if expecting a bad news. For a split second, Nebula could almost see Tony.

"Everything's fine, Harley," Pepper replied, giving the blond a reassuring smile. "Thor here just said that Balder's three hundred years of life equals to almost six years old for Asgardians."

"I am three hundred and fifty," Balder corrected with a faint scowl. "I'm _not_ six. Midgardians life span doesn't apply to us Aesirs and Vanirs."

"Shit, you're not even six years old?" Harley chuckled, a mischievous grin on his face. "You're even _younger_ than Morgan!"

"Say that one more time, Harley, and I will turn you into a toad," Balder said coolly, making everyone tensed in their seats.

Even if Balder was only half as good as Loki was in magic, Nebula doubted she could easily defeat him. He looked extremely calm when he was arguing Thor, and Nebula had seen firsthand how powerful the Thunderer was. Loki, after all, _was_ extremely powerful when he wasn’t going up against Thanos. Half of his power would still be very dangerous, and that would make _Balder_ a huge threat. If Harley took offense to what Balder said and foolishly attempted to attack him, there was no doubt that Balder could easily smite Harley _and_ everyone else in the room. Therefore, she was incredibly relieved when Harley merely laughed and leaned back into his seat, giving Balder a wink as he popped opened his can of Coke.

"I don't have a princess that could save me with a kiss, Balder," Harley said, still grinning. "So, don't worry. I'll shut up. Well, at least for now, I will."

"Harley," Peter sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "Can you stop being an annoying _jerk_ for at least an hour? If he punches you, I’m not going to save your butt this time."

“Butt!” Morgan giggled, which further diffused the tension.

"It's fine, Peter," Balder said, his own lips slowly tugged into a grin. He even went as far as throwing a wink at Morgan, who was now outright laughing. "I think Harley and I speak the same language."

"Aw, stop it. You're making me blush."

"You're pushing it now though."

"Oh no, now there's two of them," Nebula drawled, rolling her eyes as she realised what the friendship between Harley and Balder would lead to. It looked like she wasn’t the only one who came to the conclusion.

"No, no, no," Peter said, slowly catching up. "You two are _not_ allowed to be friends. I forbid it. I can barely take care of Harley. I can't deal with you too, Balder."

Everyone settled down when the three of them continued their friendly banter, this time with Harley and Balder ganging up against Peter. Taking a quick glance at Thor, Nebula saw the obvious pride in his face for his brother, and she understood that _this_ was Thor’s second chance at having a proper family. Things might be a little strained between the two brothers, but she could already tell that Balder wasn’t as vengeful as his late siblings were. And even though Nebula had never seen Thor interacted with Loki, she had heard from everyone how much those two actually loved one another. It would take some time, but she believed that things would work out between the brothers.

If someone as horrible as Nebula deserved another chance, then surely Thor did too.


End file.
